Solar System B

[OctoPiGenius]

Oh ok. The rules says that “Participants must be knowledgeable about the history and geologic processes involved in the formation and evolution of Earth’s moon and other rocky bodies of the solar system.”. Do you know what rocky bodies is the rules referring to?

I think that even though it's not explicitly stated, the "rocky bodies" its referring to are those listed in 3.b. in the rules (don't want to list them here for copyright reasons).

Yeah. I think it could also include the general history of the Solar System as well, such as the Late Heavy Bombardment Period as well.

[Adi1008]

Oh ok. The rules says that “Participants must be knowledgeable about the history and geologic processes involved in the formation and evolution of Earth’s moon and other rocky bodies of the solar system.”. Do you know what rocky bodies is the rules referring to?

I think that even though it's not explicitly stated, the "rocky bodies" its referring to are those listed in 3.b. in the rules (don't want to list them here for copyright reasons).

Yeah. I think it could also include the general history of the Solar System as well, such as the Late Heavy Bombardment Period as well.

Definitely true! Having a general understanding of the history of the Solar System (especially with regards to Earth/Moon) and planet formation is helpful and probably necessary for in-depth tests. In my experience with Solar System (both as a competitor and test writer) these types of "general" questions are far less common though.

[OctoPiGenius]

I think that even though it's not explicitly stated, the "rocky bodies" its referring to are those listed in 3.b. in the rules (don't want to list them here for copyright reasons).

Yeah. I think it could also include the general history of the Solar System as well, such as the Late Heavy Bombardment Period as well.

Definitely true! Having a general understanding of the history of the Solar System (especially with regards to Earth/Moon) and planet formation is helpful and probably necessary for in-depth tests. In my experience with Solar System (both as a competitor and test writer) these types of "general" questions are far less common though.

Yep, I agree. It’s probably best to know all aspects – both specific info on each of the rocky bodies, as well as general Solar System history as well.

[AwersomeUser]

Oh ok. I still don’t know how in depth do I have to study.
So in NASA’s website, https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/moons/eart ... mation_otp, the part of formation of the moon is only a paragraph long. But in Wikipedia, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_of_the_Moon, it is much more in depth. Does this mean that NASA website only provide basic information and I have to go to sites like Wikipedia to find more information? Or just learning the information on NASA is enough? Since the event is sponsored by NASA?

What’s the best way to study for this? What should I do if I find information on what I want? Is just reading over it is enough? Right now I spend way too much time copy and pasting and formatting the information I find on website to google docs. I think I may be wasting my time doing that.

What’s the format of the test? Is it mutiple choice or short answer or matching?

Also, how do I make the cheatsheet? I know how to make one but what kind of information should I put there?

Sorry I know this is a lot of questions.

[isotelus]

Ok thanks.

I have any question. How deep do I have to study?

Participants may be asked to identify geologic surface features and internal structures of the objects
listed below as they appear on diagrams, maps, or images.

Each of them must have a lot of geologic surface features so do I need to learn about all of them?

Learn the main ones, and try to find a map of geologic surface features of the body to put in your notes.

[Adi1008]

Oh ok. I still don’t know how in depth do I have to study.
So in NASA’s website, https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/moons/eart ... mation_otp, the part of formation of the moon is only a paragraph long. But in Wikipedia, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_of_the_Moon, it is much more in depth. Does this mean that NASA website only provide basic information and I have to go to sites like Wikipedia to find more information? Or just learning the information on NASA is enough? Since the event is sponsored by NASA?

What’s the best way to study for this? What should I do if I find information on what I want? Is just reading over it is enough? Right now I spend way too much time copy and pasting and formatting the information I find on website to google docs. I think I may be wasting my time doing that.

What’s the format of the test? Is it mutiple choice or short answer or matching?

Also, how do I make the cheatsheet? I know how to make one but what kind of information should I put there?

The general, but unsatisfactory answer is that you should try and go as in-depth as you can on every topic (the rules are more of a base to build off of). Specifically, the NASA article you linked doesn't have nearly enough information for Science Olympiad and I would recommend doing a studying a lot past that. NASA has a ton of other websites that have an incredible amount of information about the Solar System, so I think you just need to look in the right places on NASA websites. Furthermore, even though the event is sponsored by NASA, it will still cover information not found on NASA websites specifically. Wikipedia is a good resource and I think you should read through it (skipping any weird math stuff), but it often covers a lot of esoteric facts/numbers, while the Solar System event tries to focus on observations, patterns, and concepts.

There's a lot of information in this thread about how to study for Solar System (syo_astro had a good post) and I recommend looking through that for starters. You can become extremely good at Solar System using only online resources, and for the vast majority of competitors, trying to find a textbook to study from won't be very useful. I personally used Word when making my Solar System notes and I'd recommend doing so; it's significantly more powerful than Google docs. In general, you should put as much information on the cheatsheet as possible, but in a way that's easy for you to understand and navigate. I personally find that putting random facts/esoteric stuff that I'd have trouble memorizing on my notes is most useful, but you should do what works best for you (which is something you find out through working on the event and taking tests).

Tests can be in any format, but most of them are usually a mix of multiple choice and short answer (a couple of words or sentences at most). The best way to get more familiar with them is to just take as many tests as you can. In case you are interested, here's the test that dkarkada and I wrote for the University of Texas Invitational and the key. You can also get more practice by looking at the scioly.org Test Exchange and the Question Marathon for Solar System.

Sorry I know this is a lot of questions.

No worries dude, everyone starts somewhere! I think Solar System can be a bit of a daunting event when you first start out with it, but it really is a beautiful subject that I've come to love immensely. If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask!

[AwersomeUser]

Ok thanks. Do you think knowing tsome other other info such as size and density of let’s say the moon would be necessary too? It doesn’t require it on the rules but maybe the hands on task would require me to know facts like this? Also, I think the moon was on the test last year in the event too so would they try to ask less questions that they have covered last year?

Happy new year!

[Umaroth]

Ok thanks. Do you think knowing tsome other other info such as size and density of let’s say the moon would be necessary too? It doesn’t require it on the rules but maybe the hands on task would require me to know facts like this? Also, I think the moon was on the test last year in the event too so would they try to ask less questions that they have covered last year?

Having as much information on each body as you can doesn't hurt. Last year I had seen some questions asking to list different bodies from highest to lowest densities, so it wouldn't surprise me if a testwriter included a similar question this year. Each testwriter is different, so it's better to know everything you can rather than hope that a testwriter focuses on a single topic. Solar is a fairly broad event, so there are lots of things that could be on a test. The internet is at your disposal for studying, as it is for the testwriter. Definitely know the general information, then dig into the specifics when you are ready.

[AwersomeUser]

Oh ok thanks.
Just want to make sure, does rocky bodies in part a means this?

Oh ok. The rules says that “Participants must be knowledgeable about the history and geologic processes involved in the formation and evolution of Earth’s moon and other rocky bodies of the solar system.”. Do you know what rocky bodies is the rules referring to?

I think that even though it's not explicitly stated, the "rocky bodies" its referring to are those listed in 3.b. in the rules (don't want to list them here for copyright reasons).

Or perhaps this?
https://www.littleplanetfactory.com/pro ... lar-system
Or small bodies of the solar system?
https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/f ... lar-system

Everytime I google “rocky bodies” only stuff like these would show up with no direct answer. So are small bodies like comets, astroids rocky bodies?

[isotelus]

Oh ok thanks.
Just want to make sure, does rocky bodies in part a means this?

Oh ok. The rules says that “Participants must be knowledgeable about the history and geologic processes involved in the formation and evolution of Earth’s moon and other rocky bodies of the solar system.”. Do you know what rocky bodies is the rules referring to?

I think that even though it's not explicitly stated, the "rocky bodies" its referring to are those listed in 3.b. in the rules (don't want to list them here for copyright reasons).

Or perhaps this?
https://www.littleplanetfactory.com/pro ... lar-system
Or small bodies of the solar system?
https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/f ... lar-system

Everytime I google “rocky bodies” only stuff like these would show up with no direct answer. So are small bodies like comets, astroids rocky bodies?

You need to know exactly what it says - how do rocky bodies form and change over time? You would need to know thoeries of how planets, dwarf planets, natural satellites, asteroids, etc. form like the pebble accretion model, etc. You should know about cratering, volcanism, and other things that will change the planet, among many other things. Basically like Adi said, the list of rocky bodies in 3b. should be what most test writers will test formation and evolution of bodies on.